Practolo Blog

Saturday, May 24th, 2008

Weight Loss Tip #4 Protecting Your Spine and Lower Back While You Lose Weight

When most people begin a Weight Loss program or diet plan so
that they can tone up and/or lose weight, the often forget about
THE most important aspect of any exercise and diet program:
Safety.

Although there are numerous ways in which exercising safely is
beneficial to you, one of the most important and the least
observed is concerning the spine and lower back.

There is nothing inherently wrong with spinal movement. However,
problems tend to arise over time as a result of holding static
positions such as sitting or standing with bad posture or not
using proper body mechanics for lifting objects over a period of
months and/or years.

Due to the above factors, a very large portion of the population
eventually develops one form or another of complications with
their lower spine and back.

Here are some ways that you can protect your lower back and
spine area from injury and strain while exercising to tone up
and lose weight:

- Avoid bending over and lifting objects with your back
muscles

This is a common habit that wears down on the spine and lower
back area by placing more tension on the area than it should be
handling. As an alternative, bend fully at the kness when
picking up objects of any significant weight and use the power
of your larger, much stronger leg muscles to carry the majority
of the weight load and give your lower back and spine a break.

- Strengthen your abdominal muscles for additional back
support

The abdominal muscles are antagonist to the lower back, meaning
that they stabilize movement at the back by providing a force in
the opposite direction. They also have the potential to
significantly reduce or even stop a force made on the back if
they are strong enough.

Either way you slice it watching out for your spine is a crucial
part of your weight loss program in that it keeps your body in
good enough condition to continue your plan to help you tone and
lose weight effectively.

To YourBestBody,

Lawrence Cole
Your Lifestyle and Fitness Coach YourBestBodyNOW.com

This entry was posted on Saturday, May 24th, 2008 at 5:23 am and is filed under Medical Tips + More. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

---

Comments are closed.

---

---